Electricty

In this short piece, I explore how a weighted average wholesale electricity price could reduce electricity prices for consumers and substantially delink wholesale natural gas and electricity prices. Delinking wholesale prices, I suggest, promises not just to insulate UK consumers from global natural gas price volatility, but also facilitate the electrification of heat and mobility by making electricity cheaper, which is essential for meeting the UK’s net zero targets.

This paper explores the profound socioeconomic impact of electricity load shedding in Karachi, focusing on Ghazi Town, Malir Colony. Chronic power outages in this area not only disrupt daily life but also exacerbate health issues, hinder economic activities, and deepen social inequities. The study draws on primary and secondary data to illustrate the severity of the situation and proposes potential solutions for sustainable energy management.

Background One way to design an electricity system wholly based on renewables is referred to as the global Super-grid, a vision of a transmission network of unprecedented geographical scope that uses advanced technology to balance spatially and temporally varying supply and demand across the globe. While proponents, since the 1960s, have argued that a global Super-grid is technologically possible and socially desirable, and significant technical progress has been made since the 1990s, development is slow with new transmission lines being built predominantly with established technology and within the boundaries of single countries. The aim of this study is to explore sociotechnical drivers and barriers of global Super-grid development. Results A main driver is the century old ideas that larger grids are more efficient and contribute to cooperation and peace. Over the last decades, the level of technical knowledge and networks of proponent have grown. The Super-grid also benefits from...

Dysfunctional and corruption-prone power sectors are a persisting challenge in many developing countries. Drawing from the theoretical framework about corruption from Khan, Andreoni and Roy [1] and applying it to electricity, this paper explores the service provision model of Electricite du Zahle (EDZ), a decentralized local utility in Lebanon. Our analysis shows that although EDZ has succeeded in improving the service experienced by its customers, its approach has not reduced corruption. However, despite its deviation from the "standard" model of power sector reform, the EDZ model has achieved a notable developmental outcome in a way that is consistent with the complex political settlement of the country. Our findings point to the possibility of extending similarsecond-best, but politically feasibleapproaches throughout Lebanon and, potentially, in many other countries where the implementation of centralized power sector reforms has not succeeded.

The escalating imperative of climate change mitigation implies a substantial change in the technologies of electricity generation and supply in industrialised and industrialising countries alike. Understanding how to effect this technological change is therefore imperative if the challenge of climate change is to be addressed. The literature is replete with technology and policy studies investigating technologies, policy instruments and processes of technological change, however, surprisingly little research has addressed the broader political economy context within which any technological change will need to be realised. This research investigates linkages between the sort of systematic environmental technological change implied by the imperative of climate change mitigation and the broader political economy context. Firstly, considering evolutionary economics approaches to understanding technological change, we argue that evolutionary micro-foundations lend themselves to an analys...

There is a general need of elaborating energy-effective solu-tions for managing our increasingly dense interconnected world. The problem should be tackled in multiple dimensions-technology, society, economics, law, regulations, and politics- at different temporal and spa-tial scales. Holistic approaches will enable technological solutions to be supported by socio-economic motivations, adequate incentive regula-tion to foster investment in green infrastructures coherently integrated with adequate energy provisioning schemes. In this article, an attempt is made to describe such multidisciplinary challenges with a coherent set of solutions to be identified to significantly impact the way our interconnected energy world is designed and operated.

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés. MARKET CONDITIONS AND CHANGE FOR LOW-CARBON ELECTRICITY TRANSITION IN VIETNAM Hoang Anh Nguyen-Trinh, Yorgos Rizopoulos

Was the adoption of state utility regulation the result of a negative-sum competition among special interest groups vying for the monopoly rents created by regulation or a positive-sum elimination of corruption arising from appropriable quasi-rents? Previous empirical studies of the adoption of regulation have assumed the former. Using discrete hazard analysis, this study considers the latter and finds the data more consistent with the positive-sum protection of quasi-rents than the negative-sum creation and appropriation of monopoly rents.

MgB2/CNT is a promising candidate for superconducting wire application due to its excellent mechanical properties and carbon nanotube’s low density. However, strong interfacial adhesion between the CNT reinforcement and the MgB2 matrix is difficult to manage. Therefore, this study examines the synthesis and characterization of magnesium diboride (MgB2) superconductors with carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and tin (Sn) addition. Determining the proper method and combination of CNT & Sn affects MgB2 superconductors is crucial. Raw materials of magnesium (Mg), boron (B), Sn, and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were used for a solid-state reaction process to determine the proper synthesis method and the effect of CNT on superconductors’ critical temperature. Each sample was obtained by weighing the raw material first, followed by hand grinding with agate mortars for 3 hours. The pelletization was then conducted by using a compact pressing machine with a pressure of 350 MPa. The compacted ...

This paper presents the energy security, energy poverty, and mediating role of environmental tax policy. The environmental tax policy affects energy consumption and energy poverty. The research applied multiple, comprehensive, and relevant sets of indicators to measure energy security, energy poverty, and environmental consideration of energy poverty through environmental tax. The study used a mathematical composite indicator and an econometric estimation to conduct an empirical estimation. The study used annual data from 1990 to 2018 and concluded that long-run associations between energy security, energy poverty, and environmental tax have been characterized by the linear and asymmetric association to specify hidden cointegration behavior among the trilemma. The results show how policymakers have clouded the decision to implement appropriate energy security to mitigate energy poverty in Vietnam through environmental tax.Results show that from 2001 to 2016 in Vietnam, energy securi...

The paper develops a mesoeconomic approach to the low-carbon electricity transition in Vietnam. We argue that political will is a necessary but insufficient condition for such a change. In this perspective, we identify key players, and point out the institutional and structural characteristics of the electricity market which may impede the takeoff of renewable resources. Indeed, the transition process depends on interdependent organizational decisions and implies a fundamental transformation of the stakeholders' positions and relations. In particular, it necessitates the existence of a critical mass of initiating actors that perceive the benefits of investing in renewables and have the leverage to redefine the rules of the game, therefore modifying the institutional framework and enabling the constitution of new structural interdependencies inside the electricity system. During the current period, the conditions of the wholesale market appear as a determining factor in relation ...

The accelerated urbanization and industrialization in China is leading to major challenges due to rising energy demand and emissions. Cities in particular play an important role in the decision-making and implementation processes for the energy transition. However, they often have only limited local energy potential and are heavily dependent on supply regions. We therefore assess how a predominantly renewable power supply can be implemented based on the availability of local or imported renewable resources. We present a case study in which an advanced energy system model is parametrized and applied to address questions which are relevant to the transformation of the energy system in China. The model is capable of simultaneously optimizing investment decisions and hourly power balances of a scenario year, taking into account different storage technologies, regional power exchange and policy constraints such as carbon cap, carbon price and renewable portfolio standards. The study take...

Remote communities on the outskirts of Trinidad and Tobago have the perennial challenge of a reliable supply of electricity. Frequent outages can have a negative effect on the quality of life for persons in such areas. Manzanilla is one such community. It however lies on the east coast of Trinidad. The east coast is commonly thought to have a significant wind resource compared with other areas of Trinidad. This study looked at the feasibility of providing wind energy to a community in the Manzanilla area. Average power consumption was determined by a survey for a total of almost 300 households, businesses and combined establishments in the area. The wind resource was examined to determine if it could meet the electricity demand which has been growing steadily from 2001 to the present. The wind resource was found to be adequate when compared with similar areas considering the generation of wind energy.

The energy system of today is heavily based on fossil energy resources. This system was developed during a time of low and constant energy prices, when it seemed reasonable to expect prices to remain low and constant, and fossil energy to be abundant. Since the oil crises in the 1970s we know that this is not true, and the recent strong increase of demand - driven by the economic boom in the emerging markets - has once again shown that the energy system of today must change. The competition for energy resources is becoming tougher as countries like China and India become more aggressive on the increasingly instable and volatile energy market. The world demand for energy is expected to increase with 60% by 2030. Since about 1980, the oil production is larger than the oil field discovery rate leading to increasing fears of "peak oil" (IEA 2004:57ff; Zittel, Schindler 2007:33). After the oil crises, during the 1980s and 1990s, the oil price decreased again, and the oil import...

The Rise of Superconductors: Race to the Future of Technology provides a detailed look at superconductors; materials capable of achieving zero electrical resistance and expulsion of magnetic fields. They have been described as the “future of technology” and have a wide variety of applications from transportation to quantum computing. The chapters delve into the history and discovery of superconductors, their applications, future trajectory and impact on society.

The paper presents a survey on the situation in terms of solutions for grid integration throughout the Mediterranean area in the framework of climate change and energy transition. The objective of the study is focused on Mediterranean region connectivity initiatives in the context of the broader vision of an interconnected European–Mediterranean (Euro–Med) power system for a future low-carbon energy system as the fundamental objective of Med-TSO, the Association of the Mediterranean Transmission System Operators (TSOs) for electricity. The analysis examines how the power grid connectivity evolves from now on to 2030, describing the progress made to date in integrating the power grids of the Mediterranean region as well as the future possibilities for a more integrated power grid covering the whole region. The research, conducted within Mediterranean Project II of Med-TSO, includes an overview on the current situation of the interconnections and the proposal for the 2030 interconnect...

This study analyzes the factors that have facilitated Vietnam’s recent rapid solar and wind power expansion and draws policy insights for other member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). A policy-mix analysis focusing on targets, incentive instruments, enabling regulations, and policy implementation is carried out, informed by semi-structured interviews with 20 Vietnamese experts during the period January–March 2021. A comparative analysis between Vietnam and other ASEAN countries provides policy insights. Generous feed-in tariffs are found to have been a key driver, with income tax and land lease payment exemptions also being important. The main barriers include high levels of policy uncertainty and an underprepared transmission grid. Vietnam’s case indicates that a strong price signal and a supportive investment environment can pave the way for rapid solar and wind power uptake. Another key lesson is that early preparation of transmission systems for solar and wind electricity is needed to maximize the potential for expanding the use of these technologies.

Solar energy is one source of energy and has advantages compared with fossil energy sources. Solar energy is very necessary to be researched and developed further, including at the University of Muhammadiyah Sidoarjo. Utilization of solar energy, it is by preparing the installation of Photovoltaic Cell (solar cells) to determine the placement position and angle of the slope. The utilization of solar power will be applied at the Laboratory of Electrical Engineering University of Muhammadiyah Sidoarjo to make Solar Building System (SBS). This study will carry out an analysis of the utilization of solar energy compared to using the resources of PT. State Electricity Company (PT. PLN). The analysis was done with the installation of SBS consider investment and installation costs grid drawn on the Net Present Value, and compare the operating cost between SBS with the grid system. This research show the results of the analysis in gain by using SBS will have a value higher efficiency compar...